In this interview with BIODUN BUSARI, Canada-based Nigerian doctor Arinze Onwumelu, aka Dr. Zaw, talks about his experience as a doctor abroad and his expectations for his colleagues at home.
What was your experience as a doctor in Canada like?
It came to Canada as a finished product. I practiced for approximately 17 years, including surgical training in Ireland and family medicine training in the UK. I dropped out of medical school about 27 years ago and moved to Ireland three years later.
To be honest, I’ve been lucky since I came to Canada. I was fortunate to take over the clinic and patient population from my mentor, Dr. Rick Zabrodsky. The deal was $1. I practically didn’t pay him a penny. As we expanded, the clinic became larger. And by the middle of next year, we will probably have about 10 doctors.
The medical profession is completely different in Canada because the government and people support you. People here are very kind compared to the UK and Europe. The health department supports doctors very well. When we were in the UK, it was as if the General Medical Council was against Nigerian doctors in the UK.
What is your area of expertise and how have you managed it?
My specialty is family medicine, but I also worked in several emergency departments around the world for 26 years. Three years ago, when I turned 50, I had to quit working in the emergency room. I felt like I was too old for the adrenaline of the ER.
I did some work from home at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital and youth ministry in Port Harcourt before moving to the Federal Medical Center in Umuoji and working there for about a year before immigrating to the Republic of Ireland. I spent about 9-10 years in Ireland doing my advanced surgical training and then moved to the UK to start my family medicine training all over again.
At that time, it was not easy for black immigrants, especially in the surgical field. What I’m doing now is a family practice. I care for hundreds of elderly people and patients. I love it. It really gave me a new sense of purpose. The Dr. Zo you see today is essentially the product of my time and heartfelt relationships with the elderly. They consider me like a son and I have adopted them as my parents. They are the best and kindest white people to deal with. Trust me.
When did you immigrate to Canada?
I came to Canada from Scotland in November 2015. At the time, the UK had a Brexit policy, so even though we had Irish passports, we suddenly had to get work visas to work in the UK. Anti-immigration sentiment was very strong in Britain at the time. At the same time, Canada was looking for doctors from the UK to work in Canada. So it was a combination of push and pull factors that led us to immigrate to Canada. I signed my first contract to go to Canada even though I had never been there. Trust me, this was the best decision of my life. The people were nice and very welcoming from the airport to immigration. They asked what I did, and I said, “Doctor,” and they asked about my wife, and I said, “Lawyer.” They welcomed us and invited us to come and stay in their country. On the other hand, if you have a British or EU passport in the UK, immigration officers will look at you as if you stole your passport. Canadian love is real.
What are your notable accomplishments as a physician in Canada?
My accomplishment over the past few years has been to mentor many young doctors. Over the next few years, I will have trained over 70 doctors and I believe they have been successful. That’s the best thing that happened to me. And this gives me joy.
The second accomplishment is that I took over a clinic that had been around for 35 years, so in the last seven years I have entered the field of elderly care, taking care of very elderly people and managing a large number of elderly people. That’s what it means. I set myself the goal of helping these elderly people survive to 100 years old for as long as possible. I’m doing everything I can to push them to 100. Sometimes you succeed, and sometimes you just fail with a score of 90. This has been giving me a sense of purpose lately. And the best, kindest white people you’d want to do something with are older people.
I basically had weight loss surgery based on advice I got from a 92 year old woman. She wasn’t even five feet tall, but she looked at me and said, “Dr. Leonard, you need to lose weight.” We have wanted to see you for a long time, but it won’t happen the way you do it. ”
Two months after meeting this woman, I had a gastric sleeve and have now lost over 100 pounds in the past year alone. You look good, you feel good. I always appreciate her advice every time I visit her lodge.
You recently took to social media to advise Nigerian women about Brazilian butt lifts. What inspired you to do so?
As I mentioned earlier, I did surgical training and family practice training. Most of these people go outside of Canada to Türkiye, Mexico, and Nigeria because of the lower prices. You can get BBL in Nigeria for $2,000. However, it can be said that a significant number of them will encounter complications upon their return. They come back to me because they know I have a background in surgical medicine and I treat a lot of patients here.
Indeed, when I see women wearing BBL outwardly, I think they look good, but they don’t look natural. Complications are possible, most of which are infections. I know people from Canada who did BBL in Nigeria and they ran into serious problems. Some people almost died from it.
I know people who developed infections and sepsis that made it difficult for them to travel. Some people have developed blood clots as a result. These are serious complications, but I managed them here in Canada.
Are there differences in medical practice in Nigeria and Canada?
It’s like day and night! When I left Nigeria 23 years ago, I promised myself that I would return to Nigeria in about 10 years and settle there. Let’s take a look at what happens when you practice medicine abroad. I have been a physician here for 23 years and am trained to be transparent with my patients. There’s no reason to lie. When you tell them the diagnosis, everything is clear to them.
Unlike in Nigeria, they don’t give you a diagnosis or prognosis. That’s not true. Ten years later, one house abroad and one in Nigeria, we were ready to go. But I realized that I could no longer practice in Nigeria. The reason is that people think of it as “mugu” or “maga.” We will tell you all about the situation overseas. If you do that in Nigeria, people will never come back.
That’s the way of thinking and that’s the difference. In Canada, everything is evidence-based, but in Nigeria, there are a lot of financial constraints because doctors are trying to control their profession because they don’t have money. Having said that, I trained at the University of Nigeria and I must thank all my colleagues working there. Working in Nigeria is not easy. I admire and encourage them, but every doctor has the right to work abroad at least a little bit. However, there are significant differences between the healthcare systems in Nigeria and Canada.
What improvements would you like to see in Nigeria’s healthcare system?
In terms of government, the best Minister of Health in Nigeria’s health system was Mr. Orikoye Ransom-Kuti. he was my idol. He did a lot of things like primary health care and vaccinations. I think that former President Buhari did a good job, but in the current state of Nigeria, I would recommend civil-government partnership to permanently solve Nigeria’s health problems. The time has come to partner with many people overseas. That’s all Nigeria needs as soon as possible.
There are thousands of Nigerian professionals abroad, including myself, who wish to return home. I feel like I owe something to Nigeria because if you look at how I trained, I want to give back. My last tuition fee was N59 for UNN in 1997. However, in order to give back, there must be a local facility. People are gradually doing it and coming to Lagos to set up private hospitals. Let me just say that the government should work with the private sector to build the health system. If we can do that, doctors will return to their homes and provide medical care, and before we know it, we will have a medical system like India. We can guarantee that because we have brains. Unfortunately, our politicians are not thinking in that direction and that is the current situation. But I strongly believe that one day, things will get better in Nigeria.
What do you do outside of medicine?
If you visit any of my social media pages, you’ll see that I’m all about travel, family, and serving humanity. I coach a lot of people. Lately, thanks to social media, I’ve turned to marriage counselors. I love the institution of marriage and have coached thousands of young people through it. Purchase medical equipment and have it shipped to your home. I cherish everything because I live like there is no tomorrow. With my kids in college, my wife and I spend most weekends traveling to explore the world. I love spending time with my family. Since I now interact with older people, I mostly give advice to young people.
Do Nigerians living in Canada take health checkups seriously?
To be honest, Nigerians are Nigerians. Even if you are a Nigerian here in Canada, you are still a Nigerian. They don’t really care about healthcare, but that’s our job. We go around preaching to people. I talk to a lot of Nigerians in my organization to take their health seriously. The reason is that while in Canada, medical services are paid and therefore free. We tell them why they deceive themselves. Nigerians act as if they only come to you when they have a problem. Even the doctor had COVID-19 but didn’t know he had diabetes. Nigerians are similar all over the world, but we need a little education and awareness to get what we want.
What do you think about Japa syndrome?
Given the situation in this country, we cannot advise anyone who has the opportunity to travel not to do so. Personally, I believe that all Nigerian doctors should practice abroad for some time. You can only read about it in textbooks, and you can’t experience it in Nigeria, so you have to experience it here. Quality will improve. For all professionals in the medical profession and other fields, I have no problem with that. For example, I made plans to return home, but I keep changing my mind because the situation in the country is deteriorating. So are we going to blame people who are looking for greener pastures to improve their lives, or are we going to blame politicians who are mismanaging resources? It’s only natural that everyone supports Japa Syndrome because they want the people on the ground to survive. I look at my country and cry now.
What challenges do Nigerian doctors face in Canada?
You have to learn how things are done in the West. In my opinion, getting used to the system here in Canada is a bit more difficult than in the UK. But that is more forgivable as a Nigerian doctor working here than in the UK. Healthcare is the total package here. Even if you understand everything, there’s still a lot of semantics. Remember that English is not our first language. You have to learn how to talk to patients. You have to know that things are done in the West.
What advice would you give to Nigerians who want to immigrate to Canada?
I say this as someone who has lived in the West for 23 years. I have been to over 70 cities around the world. I have a lot of experience when it comes to travel. Calgary, Canada is still the best place for me. I have never met people as kind as these people. So if you travel to Canada, I would say it’s the land of milk and honey. It’s the best gift you can give your child. When you come here, sometimes there is a downgrade and you say I was this or that in Nigeria. Please don’t look at it from that perspective. Let’s think about it from the perspective of our children’s future. The trajectory changes because you have given yourself quality of life.
